A Web Portal for Hepatocellular Carcinoma study data management.

The hepatitis B, C and D viruses (HBV, HCV and HDV) are directly involved in the onset of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the third leading cause of cancer death worldwide. The HIRMA project (Hepatocarcinoma Innovative Research Markers) aims at identify and characterize innovative biomarkers related to the biological role of hepatotropic viruses in the development of hepatocellular carcinoma. The project is based on a network of medical centers in order to collect the clinical samples in a centralized Biobank. The HIRMA web portal has been created to facilitate the anonymized patient data storage and analysis among the project's partners. The web portal infrastructure of the HIRMA project is structured in three layers: Portal Layer, Application Layer and Data Layer. The Portal Layer is developed by using the Enterprise version of the Liferay Portal. The Application Layer allows the user to add and retrieve the information stored in the Data Layer. The Data Layer is based on a database that contains all patients clinical data. Patient data are grouped by information type (demographic data, clinical data, pharmacological treatment data). The web portal implementation is compliant with ethical and legal regulations.